Source documentsMedia Articles - 1990s

Last updated
3 December 2002

NEWKIRK - John Carraro is a bright, articulate, street smart heroin junkie.
Not at all what one would expect of a 12 year needle veteran.

He's 33 years old and he tested positive for HIV virus 5 years ago. He could
develop AIDS symptoms at any time, but so far he has been lucky.

John Cartaro is Italian, with a bit of German mixed in. He's from Long Island,
New York. He is not Indian.

He's been on a methadone maintenance program for the past year and a half,
but says he has occasionally laced his dose with cocaine. He says he wanted
to get off the daily methadone routine, and a customer at his parent's record
and book store suggested he try Narconon.

That's how John Carraro came to be one of about 15 non-Indian patients who
he says were being treated at the unlicensed and uncertified Narconon facility
at Chilocco last week.

Carraro says one of the 20 patients at Narconon was an Indian. Of the rest,
he says a few were from foreign countries - Australia, for instance. The others
were non-Indian Americans just like him.

Carraro was planning his get-away from Narconon the same day that an AP report
appeared in the Ponca City News and other state papers quoting Narconon
attorneys as saying only Indian patients were being treated at the facility.

"They said the only knowledge that they had about it was Indians at
the time (being treated) ... They said they didn't think the state had any
licensing power over Indian activities on Indian Lands." said District
Attorney Joe Wideman, who's comments were reported in a Daily Oklahoman
story last Thursday.

Carraro, who says he told Narconon officials he was HIV positive, became
concerned when he found out there were no trained doctors or nurses at Chilocco.

"They did take me to a doctor in Arkansas City for a physical,"
he said. "You know, the stethoscope on the chest, and we talked about
my hernia. They drew blood and did some of the blood work in his office. But
the HIV test they had to send off. I guess I won't be around here long enough
to find out the results, but it doesn't matter. I've been tested before, and
it always comes out positive," Carraro said.

Carraro doesn't know how he contracted the HIV virus. "I had some surgery
and a blood transfusion just before they started screening for HIV. But it
could have been needles, or it could have been some of the women I used to
hang out with. You'd think they would have somebody on the (Narconon) staff
who would be trained to deal with stuff like that. All they did was tell me
not to mention it to anyone."

Carfare, who said Scientology was never officially mentioned during his short
stay at Narconon, thumbed through copies of Hubbard Communications Bulletins.
HCOBs, as they are called, are instructions written by Scientology founder
L. Ron Hubbard to his followers. One of them is called Training and CCH Processes.
"Yeah, we did that," he said, referring to the training drills.

"I did up to about (drill number) six. It was insane. That stuff has
nothing to do with drug treatment."

He says they told him the drills were supposed to improve his ability to
communicate.

They gave him "Cal-Mag," a concoction of oil, vinegar, calcium,
and magnesium. "Only we called it 'Cal-Gag.'" He started on two
glasses of the stuff a day, then he said they wanted him to increase it to
four glasses a day. "All it did was give me the runs," he said.

Cal-Mag is described in an HCOB document called "The Purification Rundown
Replaces The Sweat Program," which bears a typed signature reading "The
Boards of Directors of the Churches of Scientology", but says nothing
about Narconon.

"Yeah, that's it." Carraro said, looking at the document. "They
also gave us vitamin pills. They called them Drug Bombs. And they do the sauna
thing for 5 hours a day. I didn't get that far."

The vitamin and sauna regimen is also described in the Purification HCOB.
The same document suggests that administrators of the program "see that
the person understands that the action is being undertaken to help free him
as a spirit and is not a medical treatment." It also says they should
make no promises.

Carraro told of being offered "touch assists", which are Scientology
"physical therapy" routines that are said to relieve the pain and
anxiety of an injury or other lamentable experience.

"I saw all that L. Ron Hubbard stuff when I first got there, and I knew
something was wrong," Carraro said Saturday morning. "He used to
do science fiction stories and started one of those 'new age' religions or
something. His picture is all over the place out there."

Friday, Carraro left Narconon by a back road. He took only a couple of bottles
of water, and one change of clothes in his backpack. "They had these
security guards with walkie-talkies chasing me all around in a field. When
they stopped me, they had their clubs out and one of them said he had been
told to handcuff me and bring me back, if he had to."

"A guy named Jeff, who is a staff member in training or something, came
by and told them to back off." Jeff tried to change Carraro's mind, but
finally dropped him off at EZ Mart in Newkirk. John met some local people
who put him up over night in the 77 Ranch Motel, and Saturday morning, he
contacted the Herald Journal with his story. John Carraro is home in Long
Island now, And his parents are relieved.

"The literature we asked for on Narconon didn't arrive until the day
after we put him on the plane. When I read 'L. Ron Hubbard', my heart sank.
I thought, 'what have I done to my boy'. If I'd have known about that L. Ron
Hubbard stuff before, I would have never put him on the airplane." his
mother said. The Carraros paid $6,000.00 in advance, with another $4,000.00
due later for John's treatment at Chilocco. The money was in an envelope,
sealed inside John's luggage. The Carraros say they intend to press for a
refund, and the return of John's belongings.